Display stand for supporting prehung articles

ABSTRACT

A display stand which includes a hanger unit to which a plurality of packaged articles are strung so that the hanger unit with the prehung packaged merchandise is packaged for shipment in a conventional carton, and when said hanger unit and prehung packaged articles is ready for display, the hanger unit with the prehung articles is removed from the carton and readily attached to the display stand.

United States Patent [191 [111 3,827,571 Koutny Aug. 6, 1974 DISPLAY STAND FOR SUPPORTING 2,925,175 2/1960 Williamson et a1. 206/65 R 3,051,319 8/1962 Glaser 211/181 X PREHUNG ARTICLES 3,092,258 6/1963 Bleed 211/163 [75] Inventor: George H. Koutny, Chicago, 111. 3,186,560 6/1965 DeCristino 211/177 Assigneez Pace Promotions, Inc. Chicago, "I. 3,221,893 12/1965 Glaberson et al 211/59 [22] Wed: June 1973 Primary Examiner-Ramon S. Britts 1211 Appl. No.: 375,183 Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Max R. Kraus Related US. Application Data [63] Continuation of Ser. No. 196,956, Nov. 7, 1971, 57 ABSTRACT abandoned.

, A display stand which includes a hanger unit to which [52] US. Cl. 211/59, 206/44 R, 206/65 R, a plurality of packaged articles are strung so that the 21 l/ 177 hanger unit with the prehung packaged merchandise is [51] Int. Cl A47f 5/00, A47f 7/00 packaged for shipment in a conventional carton, and [58] Field of Search 206/65 R, 44 R; 211/177, 7 when said hanger unit and prehung packaged articles 211/163, 57, 59; 248/DlG. 3 v is ready for display, the hanger unit with the prehung articles is removed from the carton and readily at- [56] References Cited tached to the display stand.

UNITED STATES PATENTS 2 Cl 4 D 2,688,397 9/1954 Baldridge 206144 R rawmg sea DISPLAY STAND FOR SUPPORTING PREHUNG ARTICLES This application is a continuation of my copending application Ser. No. 196,956, filed Nov. 7, 1971, now abandoned.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In the display of packaged merchandise, the storekeeper or dealer usually strings or hangs the packaged material on a display stand. This requires considerable time and effort and is a deterent to the proper display and sale of such merchandise. The object of the present invention is to provide a display stand which is readily assembled and wherein the packaged merchandise is prehung at the factory on a hanger unit which is shipped in the container with the packaged goods strung and supported on the hanger unit so that the storekeeper merely has to remove the hanger unit with the packaged merchandise hung thereon and attach it to the display stand. This requires very little time and effort and will stimulate the sale of such merchandise.

Another object of this invention is to provide a display stand where the packaged merchandise or goods is prestrung or prehung on one of the components which is readily attachable to the display stand.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is an elevational view, partly in section, showing the invention with packaged merchandise displayed thereon.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged sectional view taken on line 2-2 of FIG. 4.

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the hanger support member, and

FIG. 4 is a view of one of the hanger units with strips of packaged merchandise strung thereon.

The stand, generally indicated by the numeral 10, comprises a base generally indicated at 12, an upright generally indicated at 14 formed of telescoping tubular sections, and a hanger support member generally indicated at 16 which is preferably, but not necessarily, square-shaped. The hanger support member 16 is detachably secured to the tubular upright 14 and forms the head or top of the stand. The hanger support member 16 is provided on each of its four sides with spaced openings 18 which receive the hanger unit generally indicated at 20 on which are prehung the strips 22 containing the packaged merchandise generally indicated at 24. While the invention is shown in connection with displaying strips containing merchandise such as bubble gum, it will be understood that it is equally adapted for displaying other types of merchandise which is contained and displayed in the form of a strip, tube, bag or other prepackaged containers.

More specifically, the base 12 is formed of a pair of legs 26 (only one of which is shown in FIG. 1), each formed of a single wire bent to provide a pair of opposed triangular-shaped sides 28 joined by upper and lower intermediate portions 30. The sides 28 of each leg extend forwardly of the intermediate portions 30. A pair of oppositely positioned legs 26 are welded or otherwise secured to a short tubular bottom section 32 to form the base 12 of the stand, with four equally spaced triangular sides 28 extending aroundthe tubular section 32.

The upright 14 is formed of approximately three tubular sections 34, 35 and 36, with the opposite ends of the upper and lower sections 34 and 36 of reduced diameter, as indicated at 38. The reduced tubular end 38 of section 36 fits into the tubular base portion 32, and the other reduced tubular end of section 36 fits into the intermediate tubular section 35, with the upper tubular section 34 having its lower end telescoping into the intermediate tubular section 35. The three sections when telescoped together and into the base forms the upright portion of the stand.

The hanger support member 16 of the stand is of generally square-shaped configuration, formed of metal and having four equally dimensioned sides 40 which forms a square-shaped frame 41. Each of the sides 40 is provided with the three equally spaced openings 18. The upper and lower ends of the sides 40 are turned inwardly to form upper and lower flanges 42 and 44, respectively, and the opposite ends of the sides of the hanger support member are closed by welding or the like to form the frame.

Extending centrally across the bottom of the frame of the hanger support member 16 is a pair of spaced wire rods or wire members 46, the ends of which are braised or welded to two of the lower flanges 44. Extending centrally across the top of the frame at right angles to the lower rods 46 is another pair of spaced rods 48, which at their opposite ends are braised or welded to two of the upper flanges 42. Thus, the upper spaced rods 48 are positioned at right angles to the lower spaced rods 46 and form a cross-shaped configuration within the frame 41 of the hanger support member.

A short tubular section 50 is centrally positioned vertically between the upper and lower spaced rods and is welded or braised to said rods. To secure the hanger support member 16 to the upright stand, the short tubular section 50 of the hanger support member is tele scoped on the reduced end 38 of the tubular upright section 34 and is frictionally held thereon.

A display card holder generally indicated at 52, formed of a single wire member and centrally coiled or looped as at 54, is braised or welded to the lower wire members 46, with the looped portion 54 extending upwardly of the central tubular section 50. A card 56 is adapted to be supported in the looped portion 54 so that the display card with the proper indicia extends above the top of the hanger support member 16 and is supported thereby.

The hanger unit 20 on which the merchandise is supported in packaged form is best shown in FIG. 4 and comprises three equally spaced wire members 58, each having a horizontal portion 60, the front end of which is turned upwardly and is inclined slightly inwardly to form the front hook 62. The rear of the horizontal portion extends upwardly to form the rear hook 64. The three wire members 58 are braised adjacent their rear ends to a cross wire member 66 which is spaced inwardly of the rear hooks 64. The cross member 66 joins the wire members 58 to form a single unit.

The purpose of the invention herein is to hang the packaged merchandise, as best shown in FIG. 4, on the hanger unit 20 at the factory and place the hanger unit with such hung merchandise in a conventional carton for shipment so that when the carton of merchandise is opened by the dealer or storekeeper the merchandise is already strung and supported on the hanger units 20 and all that it is necessary for the storekeeper to do is to lift the hanger units with the strung merchandise from the carton and readily attach the hanger units to the hanger support member 16 by inserting the rear hooks 64 of the hanger units into the alined spaced openings 18 in the four sides 40 of the hanger support member 16 so that the hooks 64 are positioned inside the frame and the cross wire 66 is positioned outwardly of the frame and abuts against the exterior of the sides 40 to support the hanger units in a horizontal position, as shown in FIG. 1, to thereby support the merchandise hung therefrom.

Since each wire member 58 of a hanger unit 20 supports a plurality of strips 22 of packaged merchandise, it can be readily seen that a large number of such packaged merchandise can be supported on a single hanger unit 20, and when this is multiplied by the four sides of the hanger support member, it will be appreciated that a large number of such strips may be supported on a single display stand. It would take considerable time for a Storekeeper to hang the strips of merchandise on hangers and in many instances it would not be done and the merchandise would not be displayed in salable form. With this invention the Storekeeper is relieved of this burden as the merchandise is already strung on the hanger unit 20 and the mounting of the hanger units on the support member is accomplished in a minimum of time.

While the invention is herein illustrated and specif cally described in connection with packaged strips 22, it will be understood that the packaged strip 22 is merely for the purpose of illustration and the invention is not limited to-supporting such strips only and is applicable for supporting other products, preferably packaged in a strip, bag, or other type of container which may be hung on the wire members 58 of the hanger unit 20, and that the packaged strip 22 therefore denotes any other type of strip, bag or container.

The packaged strips 22 already hung on the hanger units 20 can be placed in conventional cartons, with the strips 22 collapsed and bundled so that a maximum amount of such merchandise with their hanger units can be contained within a conventional carton without any waste of space.

The strips 22 of merchandise are here shown solely for illustrative purpose and comprises a plurality of bubble gum balls 24 packaged in a sealed cellophane wrapping 70, with each bubble gum ball or confection contained in an individual enclosure or pocket 72 joined together to form a continuous strip of such pockets with the bubble gum or confection therein. Each strip contains the desired number of confections and a child can remove a single confection without affecting the balance of the strip.

As best seen in FIG. 2, the strip 22 is supported be tween a folded cardboard sheet 74 provided with a pair of alined small top openings 76 and a pair of alined enlarged lower openings 78 so that when the upper end of the strip 22 is inserted between the folded cardboard sheet the first bubble gum ball or confection will be positioned between the larger alined openings 78 so that it can be seen therethrough and suitable staples are applied to secure the upper end of the strip 22 to the folded cardboard 74. The cardboard 74 through the opening 76 is hung on the wire members 58 by passing same over the front hooks 62 of the hanger unit. The strips will remain attached to the hanger unit during shipment and on the display stand until they are removed therefrom at the point of sale.

What is claimed is:

1. In combination, a display stand and a carton of prepackaged articles of merchandise for display, said display stand comprising a base member and an upright member vertically supported by said base member, a hanger support member secured to the upper end of said upright member, said hanger support member including a plurality of spaced sides, each side having a plurality of spaced openings to receive the ends of a hanger unit, said carton containing a plurality of hanger units, each of said hanger units comprising a plurality of horizontally positioned members spacedly secured togetherand having hooking ends at the rear thereof adapted to be received in the spaced openings of the spaced sides of said hanger support member, each horizontally positioned member of said hanger unit having a plurality of strips of merchandisable prepackaged articles, each strip containing a plurality of prepackaged articles, and each strip having a top member having an opening, said strips each being prehung on said horizontally positioned members of said hanger unit by engaging the opening of the top member of each strip with said horizontally positioned members and positioned in such prehung position with said hanger unit in said single carton for transit so that when said hanger unit is removed from said carton said strips of merchandisable prepackaged articles will remain attached to said hanger unit, said hooking ends of said hanger unit adapted to be detachably received in said spaced openings of the sides of said hanger support member for supporting said strips of merchandisable articles in a suspended hanging display position, said horizontally positioned members having means at the forward end thereof whereby said prepackaged merchandisable articles will be prevented from being accidentally displacedfrom said hanger unit while in said carton but permitting same to be manually removed when in suspended display position.

2. A structure as set forth in claim 1 in which the hanger support member comprises four sides forming a generally square-shaped configuration and in which each side has a plurality of spaced openings to receive the hooking ends of the horizontally positioned members of the hanger unit and in which the hanger support member is detachably secured to the upright formed of a plurality of interlocking sections which supports the hanger support member at an elevation above a floor surface so that the hanging strips of merchandisable articles when in suspended display position are free of the floor surface. 

1. In combination, a display stand and a carton of prepackaged articles of merchandise for display, said display stand comprising a base member and an upright member vertically supported by said base member, a hanger support member secured to the upper end of said upright member, said hanger support member including a plurality of spaced sides, each side having a plurality of spaced openings to receive the ends of a hanger unit, said carton containing a plurality of hanger units, each of said hanger units comprising a plurality of horizontally positioned members spacedly secured together and having hooking ends at the rear thereof adapted to be received in the spaced openings of the spaced sides of said hanger support member, each horizontally positioned member of said hanger unit having a plurality of strips of merchandisable prepackaged articles, each strip containing a plurality of pRepackaged articles, and each strip having a top member having an opening, said strips each being prehung on said horizontally positioned members of said hanger unit by engaging the opening of the top member of each strip with said horizontally positioned members and positioned in such prehung position with said hanger unit in said single carton for transit so that when said hanger unit is removed from said carton said strips of merchandisable prepackaged articles will remain attached to said hanger unit, said hooking ends of said hanger unit adapted to be detachably received in said spaced openings of the sides of said hanger support member for supporting said strips of merchandisable articles in a suspended hanging display position, said horizontally positioned members having means at the forward end thereof whereby said prepackaged merchandisable articles will be prevented from being accidentally displaced from said hanger unit while in said carton but permitting same to be manually removed when in suspended display position.
 2. A structure as set forth in claim 1 in which the hanger support member comprises four sides forming a generally square-shaped configuration and in which each side has a plurality of spaced openings to receive the hooking ends of the horizontally positioned members of the hanger unit and in which the hanger support member is detachably secured to the upright formed of a plurality of interlocking sections which supports the hanger support member at an elevation above a floor surface so that the hanging strips of merchandisable articles when in suspended display position are free of the floor surface. 